New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-02-15
THE PURITAN CLERGY.

into the dcadlicst enemy VI the CIVILIZATION IL Nus
brought into being" Founded upon SUPERSTITION
and sustained only by belief IN tables which De-
long to the infancy OF the race, IL Is The enemy
OF all progressive ideas, the most conservative OF
nil social forces. Conservatism, and with 1t we
suppose respect for the priestly caste, increases
as we 60 lower In the scale OF clv1llzauon'
l"The Spaniard is less mutablc than the Enshsi-
man, the IIindoo than the Spaniard, the lioooeh
tot than the Hindoo, and the ape than the hoo-
tentot" In the Adams line "thc tendency 10
vary or think independently has been cairieo ~
far that not q trace remains OF the o1slhai qu'.-
r,,mapous clcricalism. The present volume soar's
with the propostion that ministers OF renslon
from Moses to Mr. Charming, have been the W
ronts of the human race and 1T contends Uha'
the EMANCIPATION Of Massachusetts as Oh ever!
other community, consists In the destruction u
,u,lpit influence and the complete secularHa'ioh
os Thought The Puritan theocracy wmch louho-
cd Massachusetts is represented rs an organlza-
tiop devised by the priests for the perpetua,lon
q, tbeir mower. Even the establishment Of llar-
ward College was a selfish continuance OF theirs
for the same ignoble end. The despotism OF
prestly rule continued unchecked, heaplne mis-
cries upon the oppressed coonists, until Charles
TT. made himself the champion Of personal liberty
Nv revoking the charter; and even after the the-
ocrocv received its death-blow through this just
measure its malign influence was continued wlth
great though diminishing force until the keVoiu
ton. In following out his tram OF statement
and argument Mr.. Adams speaks his NINA aoouV
clerymen generally, chuu ches OF any kind' oie
ecclesiastical temper theological politics. theoios
cal reasonngs etc, etc, with unbounded Heeuo'i:
nMali ynant hate" malicious VlndleIVehess'
durlicity, savagenes, the love TOT ihilc'iiH,
mental suffering and similar expressions abound
0chr fPom
of blood to guard the interests of their ORDER
l"In the breasts of the larger number even the
passion of bigotry was cool beside the malignant
hate they felt for those whose opinions menaced
their earthly rover and dominion" "Iheologi-
cal training incucates that accurate investigation
is sacrileye, certain to be visited WIFI .eirino
punishment"
I'm reading this lurid language we remember
with smile Mr. Adams's criticism upon Dr. lin
othy Cutter, that "he possessed a certain cleiica
Multitude Tor fOrcible expression" Bub our a"-
thors extiav is not altogether amusing, lof
it indicatesa lack of the historical bemper whch
seriously mpairs the value OF his book lie draws
n remarkable picture of the Puritan government
of primitive Massachusetts,, of course disclosing
nothing new in a subject which has been so thor
oughly studied, but exhibiting the thcocratic
scheme With admirable clcarness, and setting in
n strong light the NEST desIsDtic and Odious feat
,rcs of that extraordinary experiment In the
union of church and state. Aside from It's rau-
cor, the chapter is striking piece of literary
work. 1t Is vitated, however, by an eXaggefa-
ton of the part played by the clergy in the origin
and maintenance OF the system or government.
On exa.,geration great that 1t sometimes
amounts to radical misrepresentation. In this
respect Mr. Adams has probably allowed himself
TO be carried further than he supposes, and to
Give IMPRESSIONS which he would not wish To JUS
tify.
The Puritan clergy, he says, were led to emil
crate because they had been deprived in England
for non-conformity, and they had to choose be-
tween silence and exile. Silence to men Of their
temperament would have been intolerable, and
besides that most of them depended upon their
profession for support. America, therefore, was
convenient refuge. "The motives are less OBJ
yious which induced the leading laymen, some OF
whom were of fortune and consequence at home.
30 face the bardships of the Wilderness Their
condition under the Enclish government was easy
enough The most plausible explanation is that
they were persuaded by the preachers This is
drO theory. The Clergy came to America because
they must preach or burst, and they brought the
laty along that they could have somebody To
preach to- II is Characteristic of Mr.. Adams's
estimate of what he calls clericalism that he puts
the religious side OF puitanism entirely out OF
sjcht Apparently it does not occur to him
that the requirement of conformity to a service
which they conscieniiously abhOrred was a hard
ship To- tho laity; the only persons aagricve
were the preachers excluded from their livinys
II seems to us that one who accepts this notion Of
a self-seelSing Clergy enticing deluded congrega-
tons across the Atlantic must have studied the
history Of hiritanism to little purpose. The
lay emgrants were representatives Of the best and
strongest men in England. Their motives In
founding new commonwealth in America were
probably as clearly defined and are as well under
stood as the motives controlling any historical
movement whatever. The purpose OF carrying
into effect their peculiar IDEAS of religious wOr-
ship and church government was cherished with
quite as much resolution and fervor by the people
as by their pastors The determination to con-
fine the franchise in their company to brethren
of their own way Of thinking common to
them all, and was essential part of their plan.
Mr.. Adams's statement that the restrictive enact
ment "an insidious statute by which the
clergy seized che temporal power conveys u false
impression of the relation Of classes in the colony
There was no such opposition of interests as he
seems to imply. The requirement of church mem
beIshp a qualification for political power was
q fundamental rule upon which substantially all
the adyenturcrs insisted with equal obstinacy.
striking illustrate ion of the popularity of this
Puritan principle is seen in the Fundamental
agreement OF tie settlers of New Ha, en- in 1859
TIey were men Of the same tyre those OF
plymouth and Massachusetts, Bay; and when they
came together to settle the basis Of government
for they had charter. but built upon mutual
sgrcement-it was unanimously resolved after de
bate, in a meeting Of all the free settlers, that
church members alone should vote or hold Office
Undoubtedly the Clergy had commanding In
tuencc in Puritan Ncw-Ensland but they held IL
because their principles and purposes and sympa
thies were essenti ally the same as those Of tht
gcorle.
OF course the New-England theocracy was
delusion. hnritanism rests upon the right of pri